passer

\pa.se\

/\pa.se\/ verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“passer” is in the everyday core of French, ranked #293 in French word frequency and used as a verb.

#293
frequency rank, French
6
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Aller d’un lieu à un autre, traverser un espace.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

passer vs payer
67% similar
passer vs poser
67% similar
passer vs pause
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for passer
PropertyValue
Headwordpasser
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\pa.se\
Letters6
Frequency rank#293
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “passer” sits in French frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). passer lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for passer is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \pa.se\. Corpus data places it at rank #293 in overall French word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 50 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for passer, with forms such as "apsser", "paser", and "pasesr". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "payer", "poser", "pause", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is passer, spelled P-A-S-S-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Aller d’un lieu à un autre, traverser un espace.
  2. 2
    Changer de nature, de qualité, d’état.
  3. 3
    Traverser en subissant.
  4. 4
    Aller chez quelqu’un, visiter, rendre visite.
  5. 5
    Mourir, expirer.
  6. 6
    Traverser l’esprit.
  7. 7
    Être examiné ; être évalué ; être jugé.
  8. 8
    Être élu, être voté.
  9. 9
    Être reçu, être admis à un emploi, un grade, à un examen, un test, un cours.
  10. 10
    Être reçu par l’usage ; avoir cours.
  11. 11
    S’introduire ou se glisser, en parlant des choses.
  12. 12
    Enfiler sur le corps, en parlant d'un vêtement.
  13. 13
    Être supportable, suffisant.
  14. 14
    Faire une transition d’un sujet à l’autre.
  15. 15
    Ne pas jouer, lorsque son tour vient.
  16. 16
    Déborder la place où elles devraient être, en parlant des parties de vêtements.
  17. 17
    Changer de main ; transmettre de l’un à l’autre, en parlant des choses.
  18. 18
    Être facile à manger, à digérer.
  19. 19
    S’écouler, ne pas demeurer dans un état permanent.
  20. 20
    Finir, cesser.
  21. 21
    Être joué.
  22. 22
    Monter un niveau, après avoir terminé le précédent.
  23. 23
    Traverser.
  24. 24
    Transporter d’un lieu à un autre.
  25. 25
    Faire traverser.
  26. 26
    Tamiser, filtrer.
  27. 27
    Tamiser, en parlant de substances en poudre ou en grains.
  28. 28
    Excréter.
  29. 29
    Transmettre, communiquer.
  30. 30
    Transmettre la propriété d’un billet, une lettre de change, à l’ordre de quelqu’un, par un endossement.
  31. 31
    Vendre, en parlant d’objets.
  32. 32
    Aller au-delà ; excéder ; dépasser.
  33. 33
    Être au-dessus des forces du corps ou des facultés de l’esprit, dépasser.
  34. 34
    Devancer, dépasser.
  35. 35
    Surmonter en mérite, valoir mieux, de quelque manière que ce soit.
  36. 36
    Faire mouvoir, faire glisser une chose sur une autre.
  37. 37
    Exposer ; soumettre à l’action de.
  38. 38
    Faire cuire plus ou moins rapidement.
  39. 39
    Toucher, mentionner.
  40. 40
    Omettre quelque chose, ou ne pas en parler.
  41. 41
    Accorder, pardonner, consentir.
  42. 42
    Faire par-devant notaire, en parlant des actes.
  43. 43
    Enregistrer.
  44. 44
    Transférer d’un registre ou d’un chapitre à un autre.
  45. 45
    Consumer, employer, en parlant du temps.
  46. 46
    Transférer au téléphone, mettre en relation.
  47. 47
    Réussir une année scolaire, un examen.
  48. 48
    S’écouler, en parlant du temps.
  49. 49
    Se terminer.
  50. 50
    Dans le cas d'une personne trans, passer pour une personne cis.

This word in other languages

go(English)pasar(Español)gehen(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: apsser,paser,pasesr,passerr,passre,ppasser,psaser

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of passer - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

apsser2paser1pasesr2passerr1passre2ppasser1psaser2
Edit distance from "passer"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "passer"?
"passer" is spelled P-A-S-S-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is \pa.se\.
What does "passer" mean?
As a verb, "passer" means: Aller d’un lieu à un autre, traverser un espace.
What words are commonly confused with "passer"?
"passer" is commonly confused with "payer", "poser", "pause". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "passer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "passer" is \pa.se\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "passer" come from?
"passer" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “passer”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is P-A-S-S-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \pa.se\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “payer” - see the side-by-side comparison. passer vs payer
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list